for Single Payer « First 100 Days

Deeana Taylor
Co-Coordinator, Desert Greens Green Party of Utah, 2006 Green Party candidate for Salt Lake County Council

Health Care in the United States is by far one of the most urgent services needing reform. The Green Party’s platform calls for a national single-payer health care plan (Medicare For All). When a Green Party administration is elected to office, the issue of health care will be amongst the top priorities in the first 100 days after being sworn in.

Following the passage of a bill that would implement a Single Pay Health Care System, providing unrestricted choice of doctor and access to the same basic medical care for all Americans, the current entity that regulates the insurance industry would be converted to the entity that operates and regulates the new system. Indeed there would be an established transition period where private insurance companies would be phased out and employees of insurance companies would be provided the opportunity to work in the state offices for the program. Additionally, the program would include the development of preventive health care clinics and educational programs so that citizens would become informed, trained and educated on healthy lifestyles, thereby ultimately saving medical costs and lives.

The cost of the program would be funded by a progressive tax (rather than premiums) so that those unable to afford the taxes would not be penalized by being denied health care. Every American of all ages and genders and lifestyles would have access to health care.

Gone would be the days of competition between insurance companies and between pharmaceutical companies. Americans would at last be given equal access to health care.

2 Responses to “ for Single Payer ”

Joe Rowe says:

January 20, 2009 at 10:49 pm

Why do we even need a government office to manage billing? In a real reform there should be no “billing department” or “claims department”. Why should greens waffle and promote a system like single payer and all the bureaucracy it retains. I say that social medicine can work very well inside democracy and capitalism. The only new system ( overhead ) you would need is a medical justice system if a client feels their treatment is not what they need. In this system you would have private computer records, patients and staff serving the patients and buildings. No other waste on paper or process.